1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to portable male urinals, and more specifically, to a portable male urinal having a valve assembly which permits urine to flow into the urinal, but resists backflow or spillage of the urine following use of the urinal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Portable male urinals for use by patients confined to bed or people who otherwise have a need for a urinal are well known in the art. Typically, such urinals include a urine receiving reservoir for holding and/or storing urine and a spout extending from the reservoir. The spout includes an inlet through which the urine is received.
A long recognized problem associated with portable male urinals is resisting backflow of the urine following use of the urinal or resisting the undesirable spillage of urine due to, for example, mishandling of the urinal. Backflow or spillage can result in the urine coming into contact with the patient or the bed which in turn can cause unsanitary health conditions and result in the increased risk for further medical problems, such as infections. In addition, the workload of caretakers is increased due to the need for cleaning the patient and/or the bed following the spillage of urine thereon. Mishandling of the urinal may be a result of the bedridden patient leaving the urinal, for example, on the bed following use and then inadvertently contacting the urinal and causing spillage therefrom.
Accordingly, numerous attempts have been made at improving portable male urinals to overcome such problems. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,358,850 provides for a male urinal having a tubular trap inserted therein and connected to the urinal container by screw threads so as to minimize leakage of liquid from the container. The tubular trap must be removed before use and then reinserted following each use. In addition, U.S. Pat. Nos. 703,131 and 4,164,795 both provide a rotating nozzle arrangement for an inlet tube which is inserted into a urine container or collector. In both patents, rotation of the nozzle elements aid resisting undesired discharge of the contents of the container or collector. As can be appreciated, the urinals disclosed in these patents require manual operation of the described closing means in order to effectively resist backflow or spillage of urine. Backflow or spillage can occur when attempting to replace the closing means into the urinal closing position, or if the closing means is inadvertently, or otherwise, not replaced following use of the urinal.
In a different type of arrangement, U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,699 discloses a device for use in association with a urinal. The device includes a non-return valve so as to insure that urine can only pass from the funnel area of the device into the urinal, but not back into the funnel area. The funnel area of the device is configured so as to most conveniently be used in relation with a female urinal and not with a portable male urinal.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,499,327 discloses an upright, vertical urine collection apparatus employing a pivoted valve member for diverting a stream of urine entering the collection apparatus. The value member operates by the force and weight of the incoming stream of urine and acts to divert a first portion of the urine sample into a first receptacle while diverting a second portion into a second receptacle. This collection apparatus is not convenient for portable use, such as by a bedridden patent, and is not well suited for resisting spillage of urine contained in the collection apparatus.
Despite the various types of known portable male urinals and other urine collection devices, there remains a need for an improved portable male urinal that may be conveniently used by a patient that is confined to bed or otherwise must use a urinal. Such a portable male urinal would effectively resist backflow and undesirable spillage of urine from the urinal onto the patient or the patient's bed or both.